Invoking web applications from portals: Customisation implications

Abstract

Customisation sits at the core of current portal technology. So does content syndication as well as the most recent, application syndication whereby external applications can be integrated into the portal realm through the use of Portlet technology. However, these applications do not always exhibit the sophisticated customisation mechanisms available within a portal. This leads to a discontinuity in the user experience when accessing an external application being syndicated within a portal. This work introduces the notion of bridge Portlet as a proxy to an external Web application. This Portlet is responsible for customising the external application to the portal environment, supplementing it with commodities such as single sign on, profiles and the like. The paper illustrates how to improve the adaptation of the external application through a bookmarking module enhancement. Now, portal users can enjoy bookmarking facilities not only for portal-oriented applications but also for external Web applications. © Springer-Verlag 2004.